Jack’s Luxury Oyster Bar - 6th St & 2nd Ave

Jack’s Luxury Oyster Bar
$$$
****
101 2nd Ave
212.979.1012

Mermaid Inn casts a pretty big shadow over its stretch of 2nd Ave in the East Village, but be careful not to overlook its competition. Nestled in between an old-fashioned drugstore and a long empty space-to-rent is an unassuming, albeit charming, sliver of a seafood restaurant that is much more deserving of your attention.

Make sure you don’t pass by this hidden pearl of an oyster bar!

Jack’s Luxury Oyster Bar (given the unfortunate moniker “JLOB”) has enough tables to seat 24, but try to get a seat at the eight-person raw bar, if you can. It’s a fun experience, watching the chefs prepare food for the evening, and when you spot something particularly delicious, it might help winnow down the menu’s fantastic choices for you.

The menu offers an assortment of small plates, divided into five categories: Raw Bar, From the Garden, From the Ocean, From the Field & Air, and Dessert. Six dishes should make a pleasantly filling meal for two, and it’s worthwhile to sample from each menu category.

Start with Six Oysters Two Ways, a selection of East and West coast oysters, before waltzing through the rest of the menu. JLOB’s salads don’t disappoint, but for a true delight, try the Kabocha Squash soup. Its wintry description belies a light and surprising soup, where a hearty, cheddar cheese foam rests atop a savory soup, lightly sweetened by the presence of crisp, chopped apples and little studs of maple candy. The selections “from the Field & Air” are good, like a roasted suckling pig on one occasion, but the true standouts at JLOB are as they should be - from the Ocean.

The clams and chorizo are served in a cast iron skillet with a roasted tomato-garlic broth that will leave you asking for more bread - and wishing you’d ordered a second round! A butter-poached lobster is fantastically tender and as delicious as it sounds, and the artic char confit is wonderful, marrying tart, Greek yoghurt with spicy shishito peppers and root vegetable “crisps”. It is through no coincidence that the chef’s tasting menu spends most of its time in this section.

The desserts are simple with playful flavor combinations, as with a ricotta beignet served with basil and lavender-soaked strawberries. The cheese plate offers a fine selection of hard and soft cheeses, but its accompaniments (spicy nectarine jam, pine nut butter, and actual honeycomb) make it a necessary part of the meal - buck tradition and ask for this to follow your oysters.

If you’re looking for a wonderful seafood dinner in the East Village, try not to be distracted by the reputation across the street - settle in for an evening at JLOB and enjoy yourself!

Katz’s Delicatessen - Houston & Ludlow Sts

Katz’s Delicatessen
$$
****
205 E Houston St
212.254.2246
http://www.katzdeli.com

New Yorkers know it as one of the best Jewish delis in Manhattan - and, therefore, the world. Tourists know it as the scene of Meg Ryan’s famous “fake orgasm” scene in 1989’s romantic comedy, When Harry Met Sally. It doesn’t matter how you know Katz’s Deli, though, so long as you show up hungry!

Katz’s deli boasts that it is “famous for the best sandwich in town”, and while the sandwiches at Carnegie Deli and Second Ave Deli make this a tough judgment call, Katz’s towers above its other competitors. Its pastrami sandwich is so good you wish you could live off of it – layers of cured, smoked brisket rest between two slices of Jewish rye, and are topped off with a big squeeze of deli mustard. The corned beef doesn’t pull apart as easily as the pastrami, but both meats are fatty, tender, and crying out for a house-made pickle!

 

Pastrami sandwich on rye (top), with pickle (bottom). On “Seinfeld”, one of George’s girlfriends famously said, “I find pastrami to be the most sensual of all the cured salted meats.” After eating at Katz’s, *Little Scarlet* has to agree!

“I’ll have what she’s having.”
From front-left to right: Sauerkraut, half- and full-sour pickles, pastrami sandwich, corned beef sandwich. Any sandwich should be washed down with one of Katz’s several different beers on tap, ranging from Budweiser, to Brooklyn Lager and Magic Hat #9, to Katz’s own Katz’s Ale.

Any sandwich is made better by a serving of half- and full-sour pickles, as well as a side order of sauerkraut. The sauerkraut is strong, but it’s fresh and crisp, and is perfect to cut through the richness of Katz’s meats.

Katz’s serves only one type of knish - potato. These square pockets have a chewy, fried crust, instead of the light, flaky crust of Yonah Schimmel’s knishes down the street, and, at about one-third the size, are nowhere near as dense. A knish from Katz’s goes great with an egg cream, which, if you’ve never had one before, is worth trying here. Made entirely without eggs or cream, a classic egg cream calls for a combination of chocolate syrup, milk, and seltzer water, and tastes like a thin, bubbly milkshake.

The best strategy for a place like Katz’s is to come in a group - how else can you expect to try the pastrami, corned beef, and brisket sandwiches, plus finish off a knish, an egg cream, fries, and a big glass of beer?!

And yes, you really do need to try it all. Grab a self-serve table and make sure you linger for a while after you’ve finished eating - trust me, you’ll be thanking Little Scarlet later!

Pearl Oyster Bar - Cornelia St & W4th St

Pearl Oyster Bar
$$$
****
212.691.8211
18 Cornelia St.
http://www.pearloysterbar.com/

I love going to Pearl Oyster Bar - this weekend marked the fourth time I’ve been back in a year, and each visit is as delightful as the first. Pearl Oyster Bar has all the rustic charm of the Maine coast (where owner and chef Rebecca Charles grew up), but with a dash of polish, courtesy of Manhattan chicness. The long, marble bar and cream- and gray-painted walls evoke the inside of an oyster shell, while touches like old photographs, a hand-lettered sign above the bar, and the daily specials marked on a blackboard conjure up memories of your favorite New England lobster shack. Pearl Oyster Bar doesn’t take reservations (and isn’t open on Sundays), but if you’re willing to sit at the counter, the wait isn’t usually more than half-an-hour.

In all my visits, I don't think I've ever had a bad meal here. The chowder is thick and full of heavy cream, sweet clams, and smoky bacon; scallops and whole grilled fish are well-seasoned and cooked perfectly; and the bouillabaisse is spot-on, full of plump mussels, clams that taste like the ocean, and a succulent lobster tail, all swimming in sweet, salty lobster stock. The two stand-out dishes here, though, are the fried oysters and the lobster roll - without question.

Six to a serving, the big, plump oysters are dipped in batter and fried, then served on a layer of tartar sauce on the half shell, with lemon wedges on the side. I don't like tartar sauce, but something about Pearl Oyster Bar's combination of mayonnaise, scallions, red onions, and chopped pickles makes me want to lick the shells clean! The batter is light, and you’re still able to taste the oyster’s brisk, ocean flavor, even through the other competing flavors and ingredients.

Lobster rolls are a long-standing summer tradition, particularly on the rocky coasts of New England. Pearl Oyster Bar’s lobster roll is one I crave in all seasons, though - large, sweet hunks of tender, pink tail meat are gorgeously piled high on a top-split, toasted, buttered roll. Charles uses a small amount of mayonnaise, along with finely chopped celery, lemon juice, and chives, but the mayonnaise-to-lobster ratio is still high enough to put your napkin to good use. The lobster roll is served alongside a mountain of shoestring fries, which are hot, salty, and begging for malt vinegar.

The incredible delight and satisfaction that comes from devouring one of Charles’s lobster rolls is perfect for any occasion. Finally got that promotion? Trying to shake off a bad date? I can think of no greater indulgence or consolation than an evening at Pearl Oyster Bar. And if you’re lucky enough to still have room for dessert, the lemon-scented blueberry pie with vanilla ice cream is enough to make Manhattan traffic sound like a foghorn sounding off the coast of Maine.

Momofuku Noodle Bar - 11th St & 1st Ave

Momofuku Noodle Bar
$$
****
212.777.7773
171 1st Ave
http://www.momofuku.com/noodle/default.asp

This weekend, Little Scarlet posted a loving review of Ippudo. It’s hard to think of Ippudo, though, without drawing comparisons to its East Village neighbor and competitor, Momofuku Noodle Bar. Chef Morimoto may have ranked Momofuku higher by a single point - swayed in large part by David Chang’s personally serving Iron Chef Morimoto - but what kind of experience can the average ramen eater expect? It’s only fair that Little Scarlet revisit Momofuku Noodle Bar, so read on for the results of the competition!

Both ramen houses have lauded menus, full of successful, delicious items, but the real stand-outs at both are steamed pork buns and ramen:

Steamed pork buns
Both pork buns have the same steamed, white bun folded in half around slices of fat-laden pork belly, crisp vegetables, and Asian-flavored sauce. The bun is softer and lighter at Ippudo, and their pork seems to be fattier, and therefore more tender. Ippudo has a spicier, creamier sauce that makes a kind of slaw out of the iceberg lettuce and cabbage beneath it, but I prefer Momofuku’s sweeter hoisin sauce, with its raw cucumbers and finely diced scallion rings.

Winner:      Tie
Both pork buns are amazingly good with no clear winner, so it's up to personal preference to determine the “superior” bun.

Ramen (Momofuku Ramen vs. Akamaru Shin Classic ramen)
There are no additional toppings to order at Momofuku, but with piles of scallions, sliced radishes, bamboo shoots, both sliced pork belly and braised pork shoulder, and a perfectly poached egg, there isn't need for much more! One poke of a chopstick sends the egg's beautiful, sunny yolk oozing out over curled, squiggly noodles - much like bibimbap, these toppings are meant to be mixed on your own, at the table.

Winner:      Ippudo
The Momofuku Ramen gets extra depth and richness from the two cuts of pork, while Ippudo’s ramen is cleaner, flavored by the combination of ginger, miso, red-pepper paste, and sesame oil. Maybe it's the aphrodisiacal quality of Ippudo’s braised pork belly, but Ippudo’s Akamaru Shin ramen ranks ahead - but only by one point!

Atmosphere
Ippudo's energetic attitude, shared tables, and “split-sofa” chairs make for a fun, cozy date night; all of Momofuku's chairs are backless (not the best for the geriatric crowd), but sitting at the counter is exciting, like dinner and a show!

Verdict:
Little Scarlet would sooner revisit Ippudo than Momofuku Noodle Bar, but it's such close competition, you should really taste for yourself - and then come back here and comment!

Ippudo - 10th St & 4th Ave

Ippudo
$$
****
212.388.0088
65 4th Ave
http://www.ippudo.com/ny/

Last October, famed Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto listed the top five ramen joints in the East Village, and Ippudo came in second only to David Chang's revered Momofuku Noodle Bar - by 1 point out of 20. I’d been to Momofuku Noodle Bar once before and loved it, so when Scott was craving udon noodle soup, I convinced him to try the ramen at Ippudo, instead.

Ippudo doesn't take reservations, so the wait can be pretty long - at 10 pm on a Friday, we still had a 30-minute wait. We killed time having a drink at the bar, which offers mostly sake, shochu (Sake cocktails), and Asian beer. I had a Cherry Blossom, which is plum wine, Campari, and white grapefruit juice - it was delicious and really interesting! It truly tasted of sweet plums, but the grapefruit juice’s tartness kept the sweetness from being overpowering.

The restaurant itself is fun and energetic, with a waitstaff to match. There are some private booths in the back, but I recommend sitting at one of the two large tables in the center of the room. These tables have giant pits cut out of the center, which are painted blood-red and filled with charred driftwood and candles. The chairs surrounding these tables are like small, love seat sofas cut down the middle. Each chair has a back and an arm on one side, so that two chairs pushed together make up one unit – it’s fun and cozy, but you need to like the person you're out with!

Everything we tried here was amazing! The hirata buns (steamed pork buns) are slices of very tender, delicately spiced pork with just enough fat to truly melt in your mouth. Topped with chopped iceberg lettuce and a mildly spicy sauce, the whole creation is cradled in the folds of a pillowy, steamed bun. The real show-stoppers here, though, are the ramen dishes, and Ippudo offers additional ramen toppings, like hard-boiled egg, bamboo shoots, and braised pork belly.

Left: Akamaru Moden ramen; Right: Shiromaru Hakata Classic ramen (click to enlarge). Both ramens are featured with an additional order of braised pork belly.

The braised pork belly is so amazing that I could never come back to Ippudo without ordering it. It’s plump and fatty, and really picks up extra salty flavor from the ramen broth. It pulls apart sensually in your mouth into tender bits of fat and meat that burst with flavor as they dissolve on your tongue.

With the pork belly added to it, the Akamaru ramen is just unbelievably good. The noodles are thin and al dente, and the broth is so silky and smooth, it's… almost creamy, but without any dairy. The red-pepper paste, sesame oil, and scallions mix together beautifully, and the more you eat, the more you're able to notice the subtle ginger notes. But the pork belly... it's truly worth mentioning again how good it is - having had it, I now can't imagine any ramen without it!

If you’re really hungry and don’t think that a huge bowl of ramen is enough food, you can ask for “Kae-Dama” – if you time it properly and finish your noodles about halfway through your soup, you can ask for an extra order of noodles to finish off the broth. I couldn't possibly eat two orders of noodles without hurting myself, but Ippudo is so good, I want to try!

I'd need to go back to Momofuku to double-check, but I think the pork buns and the ramen are better at Ippudo - it’s a fantastic meal, and I can't wait to go back! If only they could do something about the 90-minute wait during the dinner rush…

“Notable Burgers”, Part Two: 5 Napkin Burger

5 Napkin Burger
$$
****
212.757.2277
630 9th Ave (at 45th St)
http://www.5napkinburger.com/

After some rest and a long walk, Scott and I were ready for Part Two of our “Notable Burgers” expedition (read Part One here). We both asked for the Original 5 Napkin Burger and, on the waiter’s recommendation, we also ordered Deep Fried Pickles & Pastrami and Pork Taquitos. The Deep Fried Pickles and Pastrami are little fritters served on top of a pile of sauerkraut. The pickles aren’t as briny as I like them, and the sauerkraut is quite sweet from the wealth of onions - some caraway seeds or extra vinegar would help give it the extra bite that it needs, though.

The Taquitos capitalize on two current New York obsessions: mini-food and pork. They’re quite literally what their name implies - little tacos.

The pork in the Taquitos is tender and well seasoned, and also a little on the sweet side. They’re topped with fresh pico de gallo and served with sour cream, but it’s the taquito shell that really stands out - lightly fried and crispy, but with a little bit of doughy chew to it.

But now for the real reason to come here: the Original 5 Napkin Burger. Invented at Marseille, perfected at Nice Matin, and now working as full-time muse at 5 Napkin Burger, this is 10 ounces of ground chuck topped with caramelized onions, tons of melted Comté cheese and rosemary aioli, all topped with a lightly toasted brioche bun. It’s served with no additional condiments, just a side of french fries. And it is fantastic.

The Original 5 Napkin Burger - one review I read suggested eating the burger over the fries, so that you create your own “cheese fries”, complete with aioli and delicious burger drippings. This worked out well, but make sure to leave some fries to eat by themselves, too!

Unlike the burger at Five Guys, there is nothing refreshing about the Original Burger - lettuce and tomato would ruin it. The rosemary aioli has a mega-dose of garlic in it, and sounds like it would be overpowering, but it balances well with the caramelized onion. The only thing I don’t like about the Original Burger is that the bottom bun is already pretty well soaked as soon as you get it. You get over it quickly enough, though, mostly because you’re too busy trying to keep the delicious aioli-cheese-onion-grease combo from slipping down past your wrists.

The most remarkable part of this meal, however, came almost as an after-thought. On a whim, we ordered milkshakes for dessert, although mine was actually a “Dark and Stormy” float (dark rum, ginger beer, and rum raisin ice cream). The strawberry milkshake was unremarkable, but the S’more milkshake - wow! When you go to 5 Napkin Burger, you must have one of these - it’s incredibly thick and tastes exactly like campfire S’mores, especially with the burnt marshmallow on top.

The “S’more” milkshake - I don’t even like S’mores, and I was floored by how good this milkshake was!

We actually asked the waiter if the chef would be willing to give us the recipe for his S’more milkshake, and the waiter laughed and told us, “I’m sorry, but the chef would rather DIE than give out that recipe!” It’s so amazing, I feel inspired to make it at home anyway, so check back soon for a recipe to replicate the “S’more Milkshake”!

5 Napkin Burger stands on the opposite end of the spectrum from Five Guys, different in almost every manner but one - they respectively serve the best burgers I’ve ever had in New York.

**update** - on a recent re-visit to 5 Napkin Burger, Little Scarlet discovered that the S’more Milkshake recipe has been modified, and now includes chocolate. It’s still good, but unfortunately tastes less like campfire S’mores than it used to.